American dystopian classic “Fahrenheit 451” by the late Ray Bradbury encapsulates the dark realities of a society without books, intellectual curiosity, or critical thinking. “Fahrenheit 451” tells the story of Guy Montag, a fireman, whose job is to destroy the most dangerous item in their government-controlled society: books. It is a novel that pushes us, as readers, to consider our lives and our role in society. This is a novel that warns us of what our world would look like under total government control, softened by excess media consumption. The author of another celebrated dystopian classic, “The Giver”, and friend of the Velshi Banned Book Club, the legendary Lois Lowry and Jason Stanley, Yale University philosophy professor, author, and fascism expert joined us to discuss the late Bradbury’s magnum opus. The novel shows you “different ways you could have lived, different ways society could have gone,” says Stanley. Lowry agrees, “that's how we learn.”

Mark Zuckerberg announced this week the end of Meta's program with third-party fact-checkers, accusing them of "censorship" and "political bias." Instead, Zuckerberg says Meta’s platforms will shift to community notes, a system similar to platform X. But fact-checkers are pushing back, calling Zuckerberg’s move a transparent attempt to curry favor with the incoming Trump administration at the expense of truth. While community notes may offer some transparency, critics argue it can't keep up with the volume of misinformation. Aaron Sharockman of PolitiFact says that fact-checking isn’t about censorship, but about adding context to misleading content. He also cautions against following Elon Musk’s lead, noting that when the site “removed all these restrictions, a large percentage of their advertisers left.” Chris Richmond, CEO of Snopes, questions the timing of Zuckerberg's decision, saying, "If Kamala Harris had won, would Zuckerberg be making these same moves now?"

YouTube video by Rep. Jasmine Crockett

Bahaha!

The American electorate swung Right in 2024 due to factors like economic dissatisfaction, immigration concerns, and fears of "woke" culture. Though, many voters’ perceptions didn’t align with the fact...